ALL NOVEL chapter 25
25. Who’s the Tsundere? I think it’s you!
In the suburbs near the royal capital, there occasionally appear monsters that have never been seen before. People explain this as a product of mutation caused by an evil aura.
Generally speaking, people do not make a special effort to eliminate all the monsters outside the town, because, first of all, the sheer number of monsters makes it difficult to eradicate them all.
Secondly, even if a great deal of manpower and resources were spent to eliminate them, the number of monsters inexplicably rises again within just a few days, returning to its original state.
Thus, people ultimately decided to simply give up and coexist with the ordinary monsters.
However, mutated monsters are considered an exception; after all, mutated monsters are generally very powerful individuals and are immune to the scents of potions that can drive away ordinary monsters. If not dealt with promptly, the number of victims will clearly increase.
Typically, the task of hunting monsters is entrusted to the adventurer’s guild, and when the situation becomes too severe, the official knight order is dispatched.
This time, the monster was one that the adventurers in the royal capital could not handle, which is why Valentina decided to step in and deal with it instead of the knight order.
She felt a bit nervous about this, but Noah, who was following her, was unfazed.
Because he knew that this monster was destined to be eliminated by Valentina.
Moreover, he also realized that he seemed to be suspected of being a good person.
Valentina thought she was hiding it well, but Noah was someone who knew her height, weight, and measurements all too clearly; he had long seen through the suspicion in her eyes.
Valentina was probably already doubting that he was not just a villain seeking amusement.
However, Noah was not in a hurry to explain. He deliberately pretended not to notice and appeared before Valentina, intending to let her learn more about the malice of human nature.
Unknowingly, they had been away from the royal capital for over an hour. Just when Valentina was starting to wonder if she had gone too far and decided to turn back to continue searching for the target monster, it appeared before her.
And in a form she had not expected.
“…Don’t you feel like someone is watching you, Your Highness? Didn’t you notice?”
Noah suddenly broke the silence that had lasted about five minutes, catching Valentina’s attention as she was focused on searching for traces of the monster.
“Hmm, no… You must be hoping I’d answer that way, then say it’s you watching me, and that I’m just as clueless as a blind person, followed by mocking me for not being able to concentrate, right?”
Valentina shifted her gaze from the ground in front of her to Noah behind her, her delicate and handsome face filled with disdain, vividly describing a possible future with her words.
“I never said that! That’s just your paranoid delusion. I was kind enough to remind you, so if you end up getting eaten by a monster that’s good at hiding, don’t blame me, okay?”
Of course, Noah wouldn’t be at a loss just because Valentina predicted a future. He could still seize any opportunity to shake Valentina’s heart.
This time, however, he wasn’t deliberately looking for trouble; he genuinely felt that, aside from him, there seemed to be something else watching Valentina.
“You don’t need to worry about me; I can take care of myself…!?”
Just as Valentina instinctively retorted Noah’s words.
She was shocked by the bizarre sight before her.
It was the target’s monster!
A gigantic python monster had just swallowed that evil god whole right in front of her!
It was a massive gray-black python, seemingly over ten meters long, with a gaping maw that could easily swallow not just a human, but even a cow in one bite.
In the moment she saw that black figure, which had been troubling her, being consumed by the python monster, Valentina felt a surge of panic and worry.
“Oh dear, that was terrifying! I almost got eaten!”
But just as she prepared to rush forward and slice the python monster into pieces to rescue Noah from within, a lighthearted voice, completely devoid of tension, rang out beside her.
Noah, who had somehow escaped without her noticing, was standing unharmed next to her, even reflecting on the situation.
“You!?”
Seeing that he was perfectly fine, Valentina suddenly felt an inexplicable sense of shame wash over her.
What was wrong with her? She should have known that the evil god wouldn’t be so easily devoured; if that were the case, why was she worried?
Could it be that she actually enjoyed being treated as a toy by the evil god? Was she a masochist?
Valentina couldn’t quite grasp this feeling, and she found herself in a slight state of turmoil.
“Ah, right, Your Highness, I forgot to tell you. Although I look perfectly fine, I actually am, but because I was indeed swallowed by that monster just now, I ‘accidentally’ leaked a bit of my magic to it, which made it even more troublesome.”
However, as Noah spoke with a tone that was completely carefree, Valentina immediately sensed that something was off and quickly turned to observe the state of the python monster.
“—!”
As expected, just as Noah had said, the monster that had looked terrifying before suddenly became frenzied, its appearance—especially its patterns—seeming to undergo some mutation, and it immediately lunged toward Valentina.
“What do you mean ‘accidentally’?! You did that on purpose, didn’t you!!!”
Though she quickly drew her longsword and leaped aside to evade the python monster’s attack, she still understood from the gust of wind created by its agile movements that this was a battle that couldn’t be won with human strength, and she couldn’t help but complain loudly.
“Ah, has it been exposed? But even if it has, you have no other way out, right? Good luck! If you happen to die, I’ll collect your body for you. By the way, living on in your form instead of you doesn’t sound too bad either~”
Noah’s completely irresponsible, even infuriating, voice seemed to come from all directions, and the last sentence was spoken in her own voice.
Live on in her form?!
How could such an unreasonable thing exist!
Was this evil god not tsundere, but truly an evil being that took pleasure in tormenting her?
Guh! What a joke! She wasn’t going to die here! There was no way she would let the evil god succeed!
Thinking of the future where her evil self, as Noah, would interact with Allen and Clyde, Valentina felt a chill run down her spine.
Because she was certain that Noah would ruin those two!
Even to protect them, she absolutely couldn’t die here!
Suddenly filled with fighting spirit, Valentina no longer hesitated to use the power of the evil dragon. Wings extended from her back, and wielding her blade, she began to engage in a fierce battle with the rampaging serpent.
It’s quite amusing, really. In the original story, Allen is the one toying with Valentina, yet at this moment, in Valentina’s heart, he has become the pitiful victim in need of protection.
To prevent Noah, the true blonde, from succeeding, Valentina is truly risking her life, engaging in a fierce battle against a rampaging monster close to level 90.
Look at her fighting so hard; from above, Noah can’t help but show a hint of a smug smile as he watches her grit her teeth and bravely slay her enemies.
What a joke! If he were misunderstood as a good Samaritan, wouldn’t his plans be in vain?
After all, he must make Valentina despise him.
But don’t blame him; if she doesn’t learn to resist and adapt soon, she might end up being threatened by Allen with the life of the pitiful Clyde, becoming the tragic heroine led astray.
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